The invention relates to an apparatus for inserting items, in particular blister packs, into collapsible cardboard boxes, according to the preamble to claim 1. In a known apparatus of this type, the movements of the insertion plunger and the covering tab for the blister packs are derived from the rotation of the main shaft of the apparatus, which is embodied as a cartoning machine. This occurs in a mechanical fashion, through the conversion of the rotary motion of the main shaft by means of radial cams and levers into the corresponding horizontal and vertical movements of the insertion plunger and the covering tab. A format change in an apparatus of this kind takes place with a change in length of the collapsible cardboard box or the blister packs through replacement of the insertion plunger. If the number of blister packs to be inserted into the collapsible cardboard boxes changes, then the covering tab height must be readjusted. If a packager processes various collapsible cardboard box formats, then it has to keep in store an insert plunger set for each format and the covering tab must be readjusted each time there is a format change. The known apparatus thus requires a relatively high implementation cost with correspondingly long times during which the machine is off-line during the conversion, particularly if the apparatus has a number of insertion plungers and covering tabs for filling several collapsible cardboard boxes simultaneously. Furthermore, the movement sequences of the insertion plungers and the covering tabs are determined by the transmission mechanics and cannot be adapted to various products, or can only be adapted to them at a high cost. For example, the contacting location and the contacting speed of the covering tab against the uppermost blister pack should be adjustable in the event of a sensitive product or for a particular blister format.
The apparatus according to the invention for inserting items, in particular blister packs, into collapsible cardboard boxes, with the characterizing features of claim 1, has the advantage over the prior art that a format change can take place without changing components on the device. This is achieved by virtue of the fact that by mechanically decoupling the insertion plunger and the covering tab from the main shaft of the cartoning machine and coupling them to at least one servomotor, this servomotor adapts the movements and the adjustment path of the insertion plunger and the covering tab to the format to be processed.
Other advantageous modifications of the apparatus according to the invention for inserting items, in particular blister packs, into collapsible cardboard boxes ensue from the dependent claims. It is particularly advantageous to control each movement of the insertion plunger and the covering tab by means of a separate servomotor. In this case, the movements of the insertion plunger and the covering tab can be variously and optimally adapted to each format.